Saturday, March 24, 2007

Mosinn ber ad dyrum

Jaeja, eftir langthrada bid stigum vid a land i Malasiu. Ferdalagid okkar fra Indlandi var nu i lengra lagi, og millilentum vid m.a. a Sri Lanka, ansi gaman ad segja fra thvi. Skv. skilgreiningu sem runnin er undan Steinthori hofum vid tho eiginlega ekki "komid" til Sri Lanka, thvi ad hafa komid til lands tharf madur ad hafa eytt a.m.k. 15 minutum thar, utan flugvallarins. Agaetis skilgreining fannst mer og eg held mig vid hana.

Nu erum vid i Kuala Lumpur og mer finnst Kuala Lumpur, eda thad litla sem eg hef sed af Kuala Lumpur, aedisleg. Thad er eitthvad svo exotiskt vid ad vera i Kuala Lumpur, bara eitthvad vid nafnid. Malasia er mjog vestraen borg, naestum eins og madur se bara kominn til Bandarikjanna eda Evropu, en hefur samt eitthvad serstakt vid sig. Og ja, thad verdur ad vidurkennast, vid erum buin ad borda a McDonalds.

Annars hefur Malasia ekki verid eins saetur dill fyrir mig og eg hafdi hugsad mer. I gaerkvoldi stauladist eg inn a klinik Dr. Orrloffs (skyldur Stellu, eg veit thad ekki) med haan hita og kuldahroll, sannfaerd um ad nu vaeri eg orugglega komin med malariu. Einum og halfum tima seinna og 40 000 kronum fataekari stauladist eg ut, med kroppinn fullan af syklalyfjum sem eg hafdi fengid i aed, supu sem hefdi somad ser vel a blodsjukdomadeildinni, og adra eins supu af toflum i toskunni, med gat i hendinni og brjostkassanum eftir hinar ymsu stungur og thaer godu frettir ad ekki vaeri eg adeins med lungnabolgu, heldur vaeri 80% likur a thvi ad eg vaeri med "community acquired methicillin resistant staphylococcus aureus". MOSA. Frabaert og akkurat thad sem eg thurfti. Personulega held eg med thessum 20% sem segja ad thetta se bara venjulegur staph aureus og thad vaeri agaett ef thid gerdud thad lika. Thad er ekkert vodalega heppilegt fyrir hjukrunarfraeding fra Islandi ad vera MOSA jakvaedur. Annars lidur mer bara agaetlega, soldid slopp en ansi brott bara. Og eg get sjalfri mer um kennt, eg var ad leita ad einhverju framandi var thad ekki? Hvad er meira framandi en ad lata Harvard-menntadan malasiskan laekni tappa af ther 300 ml af fleidruvokva a skodunarherbergi i laeknaklinik i midbae Kuala Lumpur? Madur spyr sig, mer thaetti gaman ad heyra einhvern toppa thad...


At last we have landed in Malaysia, our promised land whilst living the India horror, and it's everything it promised to be. Our journey from India was quite a long one, with a layover in Sri Lanka. A very nice airport in Sri Lanka, but according to my friend Steinthor's definition we weren't really in Sri Lanka, as you have to spend at least 15 minutes outside the airport to actually have been in that particular country. A fine definition I think and so I will stick to it. Hence I haven't really been to Sri Lanka.

Kuala Lumpur is pretty cool. There's just something so exotic about the name that just makes you smile, how can it be that I am in Kuala Lumpur? It has a very western feel to it, it's almost like being in USA or Europe, although it does have something extra special about it. And yes, I must admit, we have indeed eaten in McDonalds since we arrived.

Malaysia has been a little bitter sweet for me. LAst night I stumbled into Dr. Orrloff's klinik, convinced that surely I have malaria as I had a high temperature and chills. I stumbled out an hour and a half later, not with malaria but a system full of antibiotics, a great big coctail that I'd been given intravenously and would have done pretty well at the hematology ward I work in, similar kind of tablet coctail in my bag, stingmarks in my hand and thorax and the great news that not only to I have a chest infection, but odds are that it is community acquired methicillin resistant staphylococcus aureus. Not to worry, I feel a little under the weather but not too bad at all, but this is really bad news for a nurse from Iceland, where actions to fend of MRSA are quite aggressive. It's about 80% likely that I have it, so of course I'm rooting for the other 20%, it could be a bit of a mess for me if I do have it. My own stupid fault maybe. I was looking for exotic wasn't I? What could possibly be more exotic than have a Harvard-educated Malaysian doctor drain 300 ml of your pleural fluid in a klinik in Kuala Lumpur city centre. One does wonder...

Saturday, March 17, 2007

Hallo Indland. Aftur.

Jaeja, tha erum vid lent aftur i Indlandi eftir ad hafa kvatt Nepal med grati og gnistan tanna. Aeji hvad mig langadi ekkert ad fara thadan, og thad til Indlands af ollum stodum. Nepal er buid ad vera eitt stort aevintyri og kynntumst vid morgu godu folki. Thangad bara verd eg ad fara aftur og fara i almennilegan gongutur, vid vorum naestum farin ad vaela i timabili med oll thessi storkostlegu fjoll i kringum okkur og vid of timabundin til ad komast alveg ad theim. A naesta ari kannski...

Indland var ekki alveg jafn agalegt adkomu og seinast enda erum vid nu reynslunni rikari og ekki alveg jafn graen og i fyrra skiptid. I dag erum vid hins vegar buin ad vafra um goturnar her i Delhi og nu man eg nakvaemlega af hverju vid kolludum Indland thad sem vid kolludum Indland. Aeji folk, latid mig i fridi, mig langar ekkert i pasminu, eg er ad stikna. Og nei, mig vantar ekki leigubil. I alvoru, mig vantar ekki leigubil, eg get labbad thessa 20 metra. Ja eg er viss. NEI EG VILL EKKI LEIGUBILINN THINN, LATTU MIG VERA!!!! Mer finnst gott ad labba, i alvorunni!!!!!!!!! (Typisk samtal a gotum Delhi)

A eftir tekur enn nytt aevintyri vid, Vid thurfum ad koma okkur til Chennai, sem er a austurstrondinni, og thangad aetlum vid ad fara med lestinni sem tekur okkur vaentanlega adeins um 42 tima. Vid verdum vaentanlega ordin lettgeggjud thegar thangad kemur en eftir ad hafa eytt 26 timum a flugvollum a sinum tima til ad komast til Irlands tha held eg ad vid gudderum thetta med stael. Vid erum med spilastokk, eg er buin ad kaupa 2 baekur og svo verdur thad bara harkan sex. Thad er vist afar dyr og afar oaetur maturinn i lestum her i Indlandi thannig ad a eftir aetlum vid ad nesta okkur upp med vatni, bonunum og hverju odru sem vid getum laest krumlunum um (vaentanlega kex, sukkuladi, snakk og kannski sma braud ef vid erum heppin). Utiskemmtanaflokkur sem bordar uti? Nema bara i lest audvitad. Hmmmm, thetta verda kannski langir 2 solarhringar...

Eg er buin ad fa skammmir i hattinn fyrir ad standa mig ekki i enskublogginu og her er thvi enskufaersla nr.2:
Namaste in English (as promised to Lola, I always do my best to keep my promises and this is a particularly easy one). Here I am again, in India, after saying goodbye to Nepal with regrets. Our time there was exceptional and as it turns out, waaayyyy too short. Our 2 weeks were one big adventure, from trekking to rafting to jungle safaris on elephant backs to breathtaking mountain view. Nepal is without a doubt the most amazing country I've visited so far and I'm already toying with the idea of a return, and the sooner the better! Then I will make enough time to enjoy the mountains like they deserve to be enjoyed, by properly exploring them. The Nepali people are such a cheerful bunch as well, makes all the difference from the grumpy Indians.

India the first time was a bit of a horror but by the end of our stay that time around we were starting to see the humor in the whole thing. This time, it seems to be a bit easier on us and we're a bit more seasoned I guess, but still, having walked around Delhi today, I remember again why we called India what we called India (and it wasn't a very nice word at all). For gods sake people, just leave me alone! I don't need a pasmina, it's too bloody hot. And no, I don't need a taxi, I prefer to walk these 20 meters. Yes I'm sure. Yes I'm quite sure. NO I DON'T NEED YOUR TAXI!!!! (This would be a typical conversation on the streets of Delhi)

Tonight we embark on another great adventure, we need to get to Chennai and to get there we will take a little train ride, which apparently shouldn't take much more than 42 hours or so. Should be a bit funny I guess, and having spent 26 hours in airports trying to get to Ireland last month, I'm not too worried. We have a deck of cards, I've bought 2 books, it should be okay. The food in Indian train is apparently very expensive and very uneatable so the remains of this afternoon will go by in supply-hunting. 42 hour long picnic on a train, should be a hoot!

Monday, March 05, 2007

Namaste

Namaste fra Nepal! Her erum vid stodd eftir flotta ur Indlandinu alraemda, sem eg var tho farin ad saettast adeins betur vid. Segjandi thad, mikid er eg nu glod ad vid hjokkudumst um Indland adur en vid komum hingad til Nepal, thvi ad Indland kemst ekki med taernar thar sem Nepal hefur haelana. Eins mikid og eg var innilega ekki heillud af Indlandi tha er eg alveg agalega innilega heillud af landi og thjod her i Nepal. Her eru allir jafn gladir og allir voru fulir i Indlandi, madur gengur alls oareittur um gotur og fjollin madur, fjollin. Eitt af thvi fyrsta sem vid laerdum her i Nepal er meiningin a bakvid Nepal og Indland, og gaeti eg i augnablikinu ekki verid meira sammala:

Nepal = Never Ending Peace And Love
India = I Never Do It Again

Ansi smellid fannst okkur eftir F%^#&* Indland, eins og vid kjosum helst ad kalla thad.

Afram rombum vid i hin ovaentustu aevintyri, og i stad thess ad slappa adeins af og na attum eftir Indland i rolegheitum i Kathmandu eins og vid hofdum aetlad okkur, vorum vid maett i godan labbitur innan solarhrings vid komu her, traeludumst um 50 km a 4 dogum, forum haest i 2500 m yfir sjavarmal og svafum haest i 2200 m yfir sjavarmali, umkring Himalayafjollunum. Sjaldan hef eg lifad jafn mikid i nu-inu og eg gerdi thessa daga i litlu gongunni okkar, thad var enginn morgundagur eda dagur eftir thad, thad var bara eg og fjollin. Ja og audvitad Rosa og Steinthor. Og leidsogumadurinn okkar. Og allir hinir Nepalbuarnir sem vid hittum. Og fjollin, var eg buin ad segja thad. En allavega, hapunktur...

Eftir aevintyri Indlands, til thess ad letta okkur adeins lifid og tilveruna og agengi Grou a Leiti (af hverju 2 stelpur en bara 1 strakur?) akvadum vid ad thar sem vid Steinthor erum svo lukkuleg ad vera baedi born Nielsar, skyldum vid hreinlega gerast systkini. Thannig ad nuna er eg ekki lengur bara litla systir heldur a eg ordid litinn brodur og Steinthor ekki lengur bara stori brodir heldur litli brodir lika. Thetta er ad virka lika svona skrambi vel og thad furdulega er ad vid virdumst vera ad detta i hlutverk og hogum okkur ordid i flesta stadi eins og systkini, mjog skondid (Thott thad feti ad sjalfsogdu enginn i fotspor stora brodur, myndi aldrei nenna ad senda Steinthori postkort ur hverju landi;) I augnablikinu hofum vid aettleitt Steinthor a Skagann (sorry Lara og Hafnarfjardar-Niels, en thad bara virdist lausara um mina malpipu), en sjaum hvad setur...

P.S. Gaman ad sja vidbrogdin vid Capsicum thrautinni og er Elva otviraedur sigurvegari, til hamingju med thad! Eg fullvissa thig ad okkur lidur ollum betur med thessa vitnesku undir beltinu og thu att silkid inni hja mer...